The War of Trees
by King Ryukan II
Summary: A retelling of the adventures of Venturian and immortalKyodai.


**_The War of Trees_**

By: Ryan Draheim

*** The Arrival and Founding of BirchWood ***

The Tower of BirchWood was built as an outpost/ watchtower to guard against the threat of the Tree Pigs. It was built by the soon to be ruler of the fortress of Ventopia, Venturian. Venturian arrived in the world just as a war was breaking out between the Tree Pigs and the Lake Chickens. The tower would play an important part in the war.

Birchwood, the name of the continent, was plunging into war. The Tree Pigs blamed the Lake Chickens for the assassination of their former king; the Lake Chickens blamed the Tree Pigs for the massacre of a Lake Chicken city. Venturian, who arrived with his sister, did not take sides at first, until the attempted assassination on their lives by the Assassin Sheep, hired by the Tree Pigs. This prompted him to take the side of the Lake Chickens. Venturian then led an army of Lake Chickens to the Tree Pig city of Pigarea. There he mascaraed the entire populous. He then withdrew back to BirchWood, his base of operations.

The Tree Pigs then launched a counter attack on a Squidarian, a peaceful people, village. Luckily, Venturian and ImmortalKyodia were in the area and heard the clamor. They attempted to stop the attack, but were defeated in doing so. The Squidarians were almost defeated, but the Tree Pigs withdrew to confront a threat near Raven's Glen. Venturian knew he couldn't defeat the army alone, so he visited a Lake Chicken Fortress and asked for assistance. The Lake Chickens agreed and launched an attack on the Tree Pig base at Raven's Glen.

At Raven's Glen the Tree Pigs were caught off guard and were almost broken, but the Tree Pig army from the Squidarian village arrived and stopped the initial rout. The ensuing battle was fierce, and many died. In the end the Tree Pigs retreated, instead of facing total defeat, resulting in a victory for Venturian and the Lake Chickens. It was not over however, the Tree Pigs had survived and were regrouping.

Venturian went back to BirchWood and built an underground bunker to serve as a forward operating base for the Nether Missions they were planning to conduct. They completed the Portal and went through and were immediately ambushed by the zombie pigmen. They were defeated and had to fall back. They attempted a few more missions to find the Nether Fortress. Finally, on the fifth try, they found it and went in. Inside they confronted several blazes. They executed a plan that involved ImmortalKyodia as bait, while Venturian came up from behind to slay them. The plan failed epically. ImmortalKyodia did her part, and Venturian came up from behind, but the Blazes over powered him.

They went back to the surface and bunkered in BirchWood. While there, they conducted a remodel on the old outpost. While they were doing their work, however, a troll and a squad of Tree Pigs attacked BirchWood, and utterly destroyed it. Venturian managed to slay the troll and several of the Tree Pigs, but the damage was too great. They decided to leave the continent of BirchWood and find a new home. So began the Great Voyage of Venturian and ImmortalKyodia.

*** The Great Voyage ***

Venturian and ImmortalKyodia built a couple of boats and set sail on the western sea. They traveled not knowing whether they were going the right way or heading for certain doom. They came across several Islands and even another continent. They traveled for weeks, but still no sign of their new home. At last, on a hot morning, they landed in a river delta of a new continent. They disembarked, and found the perfect spot for their new home and permanent castle. This would be their new home.

*** Construction of Ventopia ***

They began construction of their new home. Venturian built his citadel in a cliff face. ImmortalKyodia built hers as an extension of Venturian's, strutting out to block the end of the valley. They work for weeks and mined for days. In the end the new castle of Venturian was beyond amazing. He named it and the surrounding land, Ventopia. This would be the start of a new chapter in the tale of their lives. They would have to prove themselves against overwhelming odds, and fight for the very existence of Ventopia.

*** The War of Trees ***

As Venturian was finishing his new home and castle, the tree pigs sent several spies to Ventopia to spy on Venturian and ImmortalKyodia. The spies found that Immortal was fond of animals and they went to her and convinced her to "keep" them. She accepted them in and allowed them to lodge there for three nights, but on the first night they tried to murder ImmortalKyodai but were foiled by Daxius, the castle's captain of the Guard. Two Tree Pigs escaped and reported back to the King of Trees, the new Tree Pig king, and told him to send an army to invade Ventopia. The Lake Chickens got word of this and sent the famous Lake Chicken Armada. It was a race against time to warn Venturian about the impending danger. The Lake Chickens landed on the shores of the new world and warned Venturian just in time. He then mobilized the Lake Chickens, who accepted him as their general, to fortify the beach. He then commanded his servant, Daxeus, to command the Castle guard.

As night was falling, the Tree Pig's ships could be seen coming. They landed and a huge battle followed. The Tree Pigs were leading a defensive battle trying to hold the beach head for the landing troops. While the Lake Chickens led an offensive battle, trying to prevent more Tree Pigs from landing, based on the fact that if all the Tree Pigs landed they would outnumber them 2-1. The battle was fierce, arrows flying back and forth and huge slug fest had taken hold on the beach. Venturian then led a reinforcement group from the castle to aid in the fight. This new wave of fresh soldiers made the Tree Pig's lines waver then eventually break. They went screaming into the sea and some even managed to get in the boats. The Lake Chickens had won the first battle on this new continent.

*** The Counter Strike ***

Venturian, eager to avenge the loss of his friends, lent room to the army in the valley and castle and fed them. After he mended the majority of them, he left the castle to the care of ImmortalKyodia. He then took his now refreshed army to the beaches and built boats to go back to the land he came from. After a few days, he landed back on the shores of BirchWood. He unloaded all the equipment and marched for the Lake Chicken Fortress. He arrived in time to see the last of the blaze set by the Tree Pigs die down and vanish. The once proud Capitol of the Lake Chickens was gone, the throne and seat of power for the kingdom was now an ashen and gray land. The Lake Chickens then made Venturian their new leader and made a crown for their new King.

Venturian, who was also mad at the huge loss, led his army to the outpost of BirchWood, the tower he built to signify the spot he arrived on. He arrived there to see it filled with Tree Pigs. After a short skirmish the Tree Pigs retreated. He then had the Lake Chickens fortify it even more. This would serve as his base of operations on his campaign to eliminate the Tree Pigs from that world… this would prove more difficult than he realized though.

*** The Siege of Birchwood ***

With the tower of Birchwood in his hands, Venturian decided to send scouts to try and find any remnants of the Lake Chickens to swell his ranks. This reduced him even more though in the short run, and left him vulnerable. His fears came to light when lights were seen on the horizon in the dead of night on the 3rd day. The Lake chickens were dug in around the tower and were prepared to defend it to the last. The Tree Pigs had been mobilizing an army even while the first army was fighting for the beaches of Ventopia, and had finally released it. The first wave hit upon the earthen works of the hastily constructed redoubt and barbican, but was repelled. The second wave hit even harder and managed to gain the redoubt but was expelled with great loss on both sides. The third wave hit and broke the thin lines of the battle weary Lake Chickens and gained the redoubt and the barbican. The Lake Chickens manage to retreat a few of their number inside the tower but most were slaughtered.

The Tree Pigs had just brought up their hastily constructed battering ram when horns were sounded on the hill to the north of the battle. ImmortalKyodai had gathered the remaining troops she had and marched from Ventopia and sailed to Birchwood. There, she learned of her brother's plight. She gathered all the scouts and remnants she could then marched for the Tower of Birchwood. Once there she positioned her troops on the northern hills and had them dig earthen fortifications and had them reinforce them with wood from the surrounding forest. Finally she deemed her trap ready and sounded her horns. The Tree Pigs finally noticed too late the entrenched foe on the hill. The Tree Pig commander decided to charge the hill before they could fire down on them, and gave up the siege for the time being.

The Tree Pigs suffered dearly trying to take the hill and had to pull the force back, resulting in more losses. They regrouped and came for a second charge, the Lake Chickens provided no resistance to the approaching charge and the Tree Pigs found the hill abandoned. Then the hill went up in flames and a deafening roar came rolling across the battlefield. Nearly three quarters of the remaining Tree Pigs were destroyed.

ImmortalKyodai had taken her troops from the hill and left a dozen barrels of black powder scattered around the hill and lit a fuse. She then took her troops to the nearby Squidarian village and dug in and used the town's church as a headquarters for the ensuing fight.

Venturian was aware of his sister's plans through a messenger and had rallied his troops for a sortie. After the blast Venturian released the last of his troops and took the small force of Tree Pigs left by surprise. He retook the earthen works and went to work to repair and get all the wounded that had survived healed and back into fighting shape.

Although the Tree Pigs took great loss they still outnumbered the Lake Chickens by about 2:1, and with the Lake Chickens split between ImmortalKyodai in the west and Venturian in the Tower the Lake Chickens were split by about five miles of sprawling plains. The Tree Pigs made their headquarters on a large hill to the East of the main battlefield.

*** Mountain Home ***

With the Tree Pigs in control of the continent of Birchwood, and the Lake Chickens trapped, the Tree Pig Armies roamed free and were able to do as they pleased. The villages of the Squidarians fell before the might of the Tree Pigs. But one place did not so easily fall.

Deep in the continent and far into the mountains, lived the Mountain Cows, a race of quiet beings. Their home was a majestic place carved into the cliff overlooking a fresh water spring. Mountain Home, as it was called, was a city of three levels of thick walls. The walls and the city were of stone and were crafted to look as though the city was one with the mountain. On each wall was a battery of trebuchets and catapults, and enough ammo for each. The walls were thick enough for six people to walk abreast on it, and every 60 yards was a tower for the siege weapons. It was here, at the base of Mountain Home, that the Tree Pigs met their opposition.

The Mountain Cows were peaceful, but could be worked up into a frenzy of rage if provoked hard enough. The Tree Pig Armies were spotted even before they reached the base of the mountains and the city was well prepared for a siege. With the Tree Pigs still three days out, the Mountain Cows used the time they had wisely and stockpiled resources and built weapons and trained the militia into a force to be reckoned with. On the third day the Tree Pigs came and burned what little there was left in the valley below the city. They then entrenched themselves before the city and brought up siege weapons of their own. The two sides exchanged fire for days and the losses stacked for the Tree Pigs, with the Mountain Cows suffering very little. But on the fourth day the Tree Pigs brought up their secret weapon.

Forged deep in the heart of the forest, this weapon had the explosive power twice that of the dreaded creeper. Up this weapon was brought from the ranks of the Tree Pigs and was placed beneath the gate, disregarding all the losses sustained. The set the fuse and ran.

The great gate of Mountain Home was soon up in a cloud of fire and smoke. The Tree Pigs wasted no time in charging the now exposed first level of the city. The Mountain Cows regrouped and counter charged the Tree Pigs, the Tree Pigs were no match for the better trained and equipped Mountain Cows, but the Tree Pigs had numbers on their side. The battle was fierce and the Mountain Cows pulled back into the second level and resumed firing at the Tree Pigs. The Tree Pigs torched the first level and looted what they could and continued to fire at the walls of the city.

But the great city of Mountain Home had a great weapon that the Tree Pigs knew naught about. The Mountain on which Mountain Home was built was flowing with molten magma, and the Mountain Cows had built tunnels to control the flow of it to suit their needs. And this lava also was a great weapon. These tunnels could be emptied onto any part of the city and then plugged again. The Mountain Cows waited until the majority of the Tree Pig Army was in the first level then they released the lava that was building in the tunnels.

The Tree Pigs were caught completely by surprise and most were killed by their own numbers trying to escape. That, combined with the sortie of the mountain cows, proved too much for the minds of the Tree Pig's soldiers and they routed. The Mountain Cows then stopped the flow of the lava and set to rebuild the city and organize an army to go to the aid of Venturian and ImmortalKyodai, whose messengers arrived at the end of the battle. The Mountain Cows army set out to relieve Venturian and end the Tree Pig threat.

*** The Battle of the Village ***

With help on the way, Venturian had hope, but the Mountain Cow army was still several days away and the Tree Pigs were increasing their numbers daily. The siege had taken its toll on Venturian and ImmortalKyodai, food was running out for Venturian, and ImmortalKyodai's lines were stretched thin trying to hold her position at the village. Her greatest fear was that the Tree Pigs would attack her and break her lines. That fear came to light on a quiet evening when a small Tree Pig group of soldiers attacked the north wall (the village was fortified by a short stone wall about four feet high surrounding the village). The Tree Pigs were repelled and the wall remained intact. Another attacked came on the south wall, it too was repelled. Then the Tree Pig army was seen marching towards them. The defenders stood ready and ImmortalKyodai took her personal guard and a small troop of Lake Chickens and began to fortify the village itself.

The village of Oakwood was a small cluster of buildings surrounded by a somewhat large tract of farmland. The stonewall the defenders were holding, surrounded the farm land and this was the cause of ImmortalKyodai's lines being too thin. The village itself was a handful of houses, one blacksmith's shop and the church that Immortal had made her headquarters. She and her guards set out sectioning off parts of the village so it would be easier to defend if it came to it.

The north wall quickly fell and the defenders fell back towards the village. The Tree Pigs burned everything that they gained. The Lake Chickens fought till they finally reached the now fortified village, ImmortalKyodai had set archers on the rooftops of the buildings and they fired as the Tree Pigs came close, the Tree Pigs fell back a little to regroup, they had not anticipated the village to be fortified. The Lake Chickens made quite a few of their numbers safely into the village. The Squidarians helped as they could, providing food and shelter to Immortal's army. The Tree Pigs now held the outer farmland and the outer wall.

The garrison at Birchwood could hear the battle raging on but could not see it due to the rain that had started to fall. The Tree Pigs here were not as densely entrenched as in Oakwood, but they were determined not to allow Venturian to go to the help of his sister. But Venturian had another reason for staying in his tower. He had received word from a runner that a zombie pack was coming close. The runner proved right and the zombies came and broke the Tree Pig lines and allowed Venturian to finish off the zombies and to march for Oakwood.

On route to the besieged village, the armies of Venturian and the Mountain Cows met and formed a joint command under Venturian. This new army was spotted by the Assassin Sheep and reported to the Tree Pigs. The Tree Pigs realized that this joint army would box them in the farmlands and allow Immortal and Venturian to sandwich them in. Venturian led his troops into the farmland and charged into the Tree Pig lines. The battle was lost for the Tree Pigs at the start but they fought trying to get as many casualties as they could possibly get. Immortal led here troops in a sortie and hit the enemy's rear and routed a majority of the enemy's troops.

The battle was over at the first sight of dawn and Venturian hugged  
>Immortal and they joined their armies. The Squidarians were thankful and promised a few soldiers to help the fight. The army helped repair the damage done and marched back to Birchwood. The main Tree Pig army was destroyed, but they still had many strongholds and their greatest city left in their hands, New Pigarea, and back in Ventopia, a new threat began to mass in the shadows and planned to take Ventopia. With Daxius left in charge of a meager force, he will have to prove to be better than the rest and Venturian must be ready for a long Campaign to take New Pigarea.<p>

*** Ventopia Put under Siege ***

With Venturian and ImmortalKyodai on another continent fighting a war, Daxius was left in command of the garrison at Ventopia. Daxius was an iron creation of Venturian's that served him completely. He was named the captain of the guard at Ventopia. Under his command was a small troop of Lake Chickens.

On a chilly evening, a scout spotted movement on the horizon, the alarm was sounded. Daxius couldn't tell what was coming, but whatever it was, there were a lot of them. He pulled his troops inside the fortress and waited. At around midnight the attack came, masses of black creatures suddenly appeared within the fortress walls and took the garrison by surprise. Daxius himself jumped into the fray and the garrison managed to hold out against this new foe.

Native to the desolate plains of the End, a barren dimension, the Endermen were a race of black beings able to teleport at will. With their own home desolate they became desperate and created a portal to this world. Once here they came across the Tree Pigs. After a brief surprise the Tree Pigs sensed an opportunity, they struck a deal with the Endermen and agreed to split the rewards when they won. So it was this army that Daxius now faced.

With the initial assault halted, Daxius set to work on fortifying the valley. With only a meagre force though, he had to use his troops wisely. He then sent out messengers to seek reinforcements. He knew of a Squidarian village not too far from Ventopia and hoped the messengers would make it. With that done, all he could do was wait for the next attack.

The attack came once again at midnight, the masses of black poured into the fortress and met heavy resistance. The defenders held and repulsed the attackers back. The Endermen then waited for the next night.

The next day proved better luck; the messengers had come across a small detachment of Squidarian troops and had relayed the message. The Squidarians immediately headed for the fortress and arrived that morning. Daxius thanked them for coming and set them to work to help get ready for the next attack. With night falling Daxius sent the troops behind the wall and waited. At exactly midnight the third attack came. The Endermen were easily repulsed this time and were sent shrieking back. A second wave hit and was repulsed. Another three waves were sent all ending with a little more gain of ground and loss of troops on the Endermen side and even more losses for the defenders.

Finally, the sun came up and the Endermen fell back. Daxius then began to refortify the outer wall. He was now lacking in both troops and supplies. He doubted he would survive.

*** The Fall of an Empire ***

While all these events were taking place, the Tree Pigs at New Pigarea began to grow restless, their armies destroyed and Venturian closing in, the populous began to riot. The King of Trees, as the king of the Tree Pigs was called, was holding on to the hope that help would arrive, but on a misty morning, that hope was dashed.

The look outs on the walls sighted the army of Venturian and ImmortalKyodai. The defending garrison was ill-equipped and was lacking supplies. This was turning out to become a pretty short siege.

Venturian marched at the head of the column. He led his troops to just outside the range of the walls. There he constructed siege engines and laid the Capitol of the Tree Pigs under siege. The defenders lost all hope after seeing the great army of Venturian and ImmortalKyodai, and as the sun rose on the second day, they surrendered the city to the forces of Venturian.

Venturian marched into the city and went straight for the palace. There, he executed the king and took the crown, thus the Empire of Trees was destroyed.

It was later that same day when Venturian received news of the siege of Ventopia, he then readied his troops and marched out of the city, leaving the Tree Pigs to their own devices, they were now not considered a threat.

*** The Meeting of Daxius and Venturian ***

With his greatest enemy now defeated, Venturian turned his wrath towards his home. He set off for the coast and hoped Daxius would hold for two more nights.

Daxius was in a strange position, on one hand, he could hole up and hope to hold out until Venturian arrived, or he could march out and meet Venturian halfway. Both were risky, but in the end, Daxius decided to leave the fortress and meet his master halfway. He got his troops ready and left the Fortress to the Endermen.

Venturian had arrived on the beach the next day with his host and set out building a fleet to reach Ventopia. But, as he began working, the lookouts spotted a small flotilla; he quickly began to gather his men into a defensible position. As the small fleet approached, one of the lookouts spotted the flag of Ventopia flying from the largest vessel. Venturian told his men not to put down their guard in case this was a trap. But, as the ships landed, he realized that it wasn't the case. The Lake Chickens and Squidarians got off the boats and were quickly welcomed, and Daxius himself got off and went to Venturian.

After a briefing on what had happened, Venturian agreed that it was best that Daxius came. With the two Armies united, Venturian had the man power to take on the Endermen. He continued working on the fleet and soon had enough ships to transport his Army. As the fleet prepared to leave, Venturian assigned Immortal with the task of finding the Endermen's base of operations. She agreed and took a small troop of Squidarians with her. Venturian loaded the army and set sail for Ventopia, to retake his home.

*** The Second Siege of Ventopia ***

Venturian was set on retaking his home. When the fleet came within view of the shores they could now see what they were up against. The Endermen had fortified the shore-line and had placed great cannons of TNT along the entire shore. Venturian would not let that stop him from taking the beach. As the fleet neared the shore, the cannons let loose their deadly fire and several ships were immediately sunk and many more were hit, but the ships kept going. Salvo after salvo the cannons barked and still, on the fleet went.

Then the armies of Venturian unloaded under a hail of fire from the hills overlooking the beach as troops were killed more came to fill the gaps. The endermen released their troops upon the battered army, hundreds and hundreds of Tree-Pigs whom were taken from New Pigarea before its fall charged the ranks of the Lake Chickens all the while under fire from the hills. The Lake Chickens fought valiantly and repelled the Tree Pig charge and counter charged the Endermen positions. Venturian came ashore with his personal guard of Elite Mountain Cows. He led the charge up one of the hills and slayed the Endermen stationed there and turned the cannons upon the other emplacements. As other hills fell they turned their cannons upon the other hills. Slowly the beach was secured but the fighting was far from over, the enemy had entrenched deep in the hills beyond, and fighting could still be heard from the beach. More troops disembarked and soon supplies as well.

Venturian had suffered great loss on his charge up the hill and was holding his position and waiting for help when a surprise attack came from the Tree Pigs, Venturian had no choice but to fall back. The Tree Pigs had counter attacked the other hills and captured most back, and were turning the cannon back on the beach. The bombardment cost many lives and the Lake Chickens had to retake the hills. This was a great loss on both sides, but in the end the Lake Chickens were the owners of the shore line hills. A great stalemate ensued with both sides firing the cannons at the other side.

The tie breaker came when the Squidarian regiment from Oakwood charged the main hill of the enemy and sent them routing and turned the cannons on the hill onto the other hills. This caused the disturbance Venturian needed and led the charge to take the hills. He charged with the remains of his personal guard and slaughtered the Endermen on the hill. Soon all the hills waved the flag of the V. Venturian then led his troops to the valley of Ventopia and laid it under siege for the endermen still had great numbers and a few Tree Pigs had survived as well. Both sides settled into a long siege. Venturian made his headquarters at a small village near the battlefield; the Squidarians there hailed him as their savior and pledged themselves to him. He settled in for a long siege.

*** The Journey of ImmortalKyodai ***

Immortal was in the cabin of her ship when the call came out "STORM AHEAD!" She quickly put up her journal she was working on and started to strap everything down. Her personal aide came in and told her the storm was a hurricane and the ship was being pulled in. She put on her coat and went out on deck. To the untrained eye it looked like chaos, but there was a system to the madness. Sailors went up to tend the sails and sailors went down to work the pumps. Immortal went to stand next to the helmsman. "Are we gonna make it?" she asked, keeping her eyes on the approaching storm.

"It is doubtful… but there is always hope," he replied.

But the fear in his voice betrayed his calm demeanor. She held onto the ornamental carved wood and prayed that they would make it out alive. The crew, consisting of nothing more than Squidarians and a few Lake Chickens as marines, was all ready and were all facing the storm. A few chose to look at the sunset behind them, hoping it wasn't their last. As the first swells appeared over the rails the sun was well covered in the dark clouds. Immortal took her leave and went to her cabin.

The Queen Sally was the name Immortal named her ship. Built specifically for her she treated it like a child. The Queen Sally, or just Sally, was a small two decker ship with three masts. She was built of the strongest oak and was paid for by Venturian as a gift to her a long while ago. But now the Sally was riding waves that reached ten feet higher than the deck and was in jeopardy of sinking.

The crew was working the pumps trying to keep the water out of the hold, but to no avail. The water was rising faster than it was being pumped out. Immortal went back on the deck and went to stand beside the helmsman. She couldn't see ten feet in front of her and was soaked to the bone. Then they saw it. At first they thought it was just the horizon, but then they heard a noise that drowned out even the storm around them and then it hit. A huge wall of solid water around 100 feet tall and miles wide hit the ship and obliterated it. Immortal heard a noise like an explosion then was knocked unconscious by what felt like a brick wall and heard no more.

She was awoken by something that hit her feet. She opened her eyes and was greeted by a bright blue sky. She tried to sit up but felt wobbly. She turned her head and found out why; she was adrift on a piece of wood from her ship. She struggled to sit up without tilting over. She managed to sit up straight and looked around. To one direction was a small mass a dark, which she assumed was the storm. Then she turned her head another way. Nothing but ocean and blue sky except for the occasional piece of wood from her ship as far as she could see. She took a piece of wood that was attached to some cloth that was coming by and got an idea. She started to paddle around the wreckage and soon had quite a bit of material. She struck it rich when she found a set of tools still hooked onto what looked like a piece of wall. She tethered all of this to her raft and set to work.

By the end of the day she had constructed a small shelter. It was nothing more than a cloth over a small raft with several other rafts tied to the center one. But it would suffice until she could get to land.

*** Immortal Captured ***

After a few days, Immortal's supplies were running out and she was becoming dehydrated. On the fourth night she heard a noise that sounded a lot like surf crashing on rocks. She bolted upright and saw a promontory of rock jutting from the edge of a strange land. She got her paddle and steered clear of the danger and landed on a soft stretch of beach. She got off and hauled her raft onto the beach and set it up against a group of trees. She was ready to create a makeshift shelter when a group of creatures attacked and bound her. She tried to fight back but was hit with a huge object and knew no more.

She woke up to a swaying motion. She grudgingly opened her eyes and found she was hung upside down and tied to a pole that was slung between two of the ugliest Tree Pigs she'd ever seen. She groaned as the pain in her head became too bad. She was quickly hit with the end a a stick by one of the Tree Pigs. She asked where she was, but was rewarded with another hit. She saw no more.

She woke again, this time tied to a tree overlooking a small camp fire. Her captors were sitting and eating a sort of soup. She moved slightly, but was noticed by one of the Tree Pigs and he (or she?) came and handed her a bowl of the soup. She drank it greedily for she hadn't eaten in days. The Tree Pig went back to sit with his friends. She sat there watching them one by one go to their beds and fall asleep. One stayed up to guard the camp. Immortal looked up and prayed that Venturian was okay.

*** Venturian's Wrath ***

Meanwhile, Venturian had settled for the winter in a siege around his own home. He paced the room of the home the Squidarians lent him. It was the largest house in the village; it had 3 rooms, a bedroom with a collection of books, a sitting room, and a kitchen. He got dressed and went out to the village's church, which had a tall tower and Venturian had placed lookout on the top, against the protest of the local priest. He climbed the ladder to the cold and windy top. Two soldiers of the Oakwood regiment were standing watch and both saluted as he came up. He waved them off and went to look at the dark silhouette of the mountains of Ventopia. If he squinted he could make out his troops in the trenches he had ordered dug, and if he looked hard enough he could see the Endermen and Tree Pigs behind the walls of Ventopia. Venturian asked if the lookouts had seen any activity, they said no and he made his leave. As he headed for the makeshift command quarters, small flurries of snow began to fall. He opened the door and made a seat at the head of the table. He was served a cup of hot coffee. His generals were discussing a plan of attack for the coming spring. He wasn't interested in this idle talk; he had had a nightmare last night about his sister being held captive in an unknown land. He brushed it on too much coffee the night before.

He left the talk of war to his generals, and left for his house. As he was nearing his house a messenger ran up panting, Venturian asked what happened. The messenger replied by giving Venturian a letter. Venturian opened it. It was from the captain of the Lil' Vent. He read how the Lil' Vent had found wreckage of his sister's ship in shallow seas and how they found all the crew dead but Immortal wasn't to be found. He stared at the letter as if the wording would change and say his sister was on her way home. After a few uncomfortable minutes, the messenger coughed politely and Venturian looked up and said to prepare the Oakwood regiments for a long march. The messenger ran off to find the captain of the regiment. Venturian went inside his house and put on his armor and strapped on his diamond sword. He stormed outside and walked briskly to the command building and told the generals to take command of the siege operation while he was away. One of the generals asked where he was going, but Venturian was already on his way out. He met up with the Oakwood regiment's captain who was dressed but looked like he just got out of bed. Venturian asked how long before they could move out. The captain, whose name was Luke, replied that his troops were just informed and would be ready to march in minutes, Venturian nodded and walked off to the stable to saddle his horse. By the time he came back to the Village square, the Oakwood regiment were standing in order and stood to attention when Venturian rode by. Venturian asked if the troops were ready for a long march and Luke said they were.

The troops of the Oakwood regiment were Venturian's veteran unit. Dressed in green with the banners of Oakwood, a golden oak on a field of green, and Venturian flying at the head of the column, the regiment of Oakwood was an imposing sight. As the column of green grew smaller to the lookouts in the village, they could only guess why their leader was marching away in the dead of winter.


End file.
